John Kasich on Budget & Economy

1989 had 3 budgets: Democrats'; President's; and Kasich's

I was overwhelmed because both 1989 budgets were deeply flawed proposals. Bush the First, his budget was terrible. And the Democratic budget was even worse. So I went back to my office and announced to my staff that we would write our own budget.

In
1989 there was offered on the House floor the President's budget, and the Democrats' rebuttal budget, and the Kasich budget. The Democratic budget received 230 votes. The Bush budget received 213 votes. The Kasich budget received 30 votes.

Every year
I offered my own budget for consideration, and my 3rd or 4th year my budget received more votes than the President got for his budget, and in so doing I learned a few things about leadership. Leadership is not talking. Leadership is doing.
Every time they beat my budget on the floor of the House and I lay there in a bloody heap, people knew I was committed. It wasn't talk. It was action.

1995 shutdown led to first balanced budget in 40 years

In 1995 when the Republicans won the majority I became chairman of the House Budget Committee. We were poised and ready to balance the budget for the first time since man walked on the moon.

As it happened, Pres. Clinton wanted to phony up the numbers
on this first go-round, so we shut down the government. I look back and think it was one of the greatest moments of my career. Why? Well, typically, politicians make their decisions based on votes. And yet in at least this one instance politicians set
aside these concerns and stood up for what was right. For our children. For our shared future. For America. For this one battle, for the time being, we forgot about politics and focused on good government, and if we had to take a beating for it then so b
it. And as a direct result of that government shutdown in 1995, we wrote a bill that provided for the first balanced budget in nearly forty years and allowed us to pay down the largest chunk of our staggering national debt in the history of this country.

Sarbanes-Oxley deters legitimate American business

Mutual funds were established in the early 1900s as a way for the average investor to participate in the markets without the benefit of deep pockets. They have lately been operating under such a cloud of suspicion that many people have taken their
investment dollars elsewhere.

The cleanup continues, and frankly I don't think we're doing a good job of it. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, hailed as the most significant change to federal securities laws since the New Deal, has had a deleterious
effect on American business. I see it as a clear case of the government overreacting to a serious problem, one that can't be solved through legislation. Why? Well, for one thing, you can't legislate ethical behavior; you either know the difference betwee
right and wrong, or you don't.

On the positive side, Sarbanes-Oxley has established a strong set of internal controls. But they've been a deterrent to legitimate American businesses. They've put many honest businessmen and women on the defensive.

Against ethanol subsidies, and all subsidies

Kasich opposes federal subsidies for ethanol, a corn derivative added to gasoline. Ethanol is especially important to Iowans, who see it as a way to expand demand for corn. “I’m not against ethanol, but I’m not for any subsidies,” Kasich said, adding
that he’s against similar benefits for sugar and peanuts. Kasich’s candor was appreciated [by an Iowa gathering], although his stance was not. “They tell me that’s going to kill me in Iowa, but I’m not changing my position to get votes,” he said.

Supports balanced budget amendment & line item veto.

Kasich signed the Contract with America:

[As part of the Contract with America, within 100 days we pledge to bring to the House Floor the following bill]:

The Fiscal Responsibility Act:A balanced budget/tax limitation amendment and a legislative line-item veto to restore fiscal responsibility to an out-of-control Congress, requiring them to live under the same budget constraints as families and businesses.